Transforming Your Inner Critic

The Inner Critic is the part of you that judges you, demeans you, and tells you who you should be. It undermines your self-confidence and makes you feel bad about yourself. Since this is one of the most difficult and tenacious issues that people face, we have collaborated on a serious study of how to transform the Inner Critic using IFS.

Our core understanding is that self-esteem is your birthright. You deserve to feel good about yourself without having to earn it. However, we’ve all had the experience of feeling bad about ourselves. Think of those times when you felt down and believed that you were worthless, stupid, incompetent, etc. That wasn’t the truth about you; it was a message from your Inner Critic.

The Seven Types of Inner Critics

There isn’t just one Inner Critic part; most people have a number of self-judging protectors that operate in different ways. We have identified seven types of Critics with different motivations and strategies for controlling you. Take a Quizto determine which of the seven types of Critics may be a problem for you. For each Critic type that you score high on, you can read a report that describes that type of Critic and gives a brief idea of how to begin transforming it. You can also read about the seven types of Critics.

“I took the Inner Critic Questionnaire again after more than a year and half since the first time I took it (April 2012), which is about the same amount of time that I’ve been working with my present therapist. Every one of my inner critic scores has gone down, four out of seven of them by about half. The Taskmaster and the Perfectionist scores are still high, but the Underminer, Destroyer, Guilt Tripper, and Molder critics have been reduced considerably. It’s so valuable to see which specific inner critics still need my attention, and to see success reflected by numbers.” ~Cheryl H.

When you go inside and actually get to know an Inner Critic part using IFS, it’s surprising to learn that it is actually trying to help you (even though it is really causing trouble). This makes it possible to make a personal connection with a Critic rather than fighting it, and this helps it to let go of its judgments. We have worked out the details of exactly how to transform each of the seven Inner Critics using IFS.

Your Inner Champion

Another exciting and hopeful result of our study: We have discovered that you can develop an aspect of your Self that we call the Inner Champion, which supports and encourages you. It is a magic bullet for dealing with the negative impacts of your Inner Critics. The adage “You can love yourself” is not just a platitude. Our work shows you how to do exactly that. Click herefor a brief article on the Inner Critic, self-esteem, and the Inner Champion. Therefore you aren’t stuck with the anguish and difficulties that stem from your Inner Critic. Your inner world can change so that you feel confident and capable, allowing your life journey to unfold in an exciting way.

Inner Critic Books

Learn how to explore your Inner Critic and transform it using Internal Family Systems Therapy, a new cutting-edge method. Read our book, Freedom From Your Inner Critic.

Get a series of 4 videos to learn about the power of IFS.

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IFS Introductory Seminar Tuesday, March 26 Jay Earley, PhD This free introductory seminar will introduce IFS and give you a taste of working on yourself using this approach. It will include experiential exercises and[...]